wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. (18) He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no
murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, (19) Honour
thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.‖
Many attempts have been made to explain away Y‘shua's direct answer. He did not say "accept me into your
heart" or some similar statement. He made it clear that obedience to Torah was key. However, we know from
both the Tenakh and the Brit Chadashah (New Covenant) that one cannot earn or work their way into
heaven by keeping the commandments outside of faith. YHWH wants us to put our entire trust in Him first,
then to learn and walk in His ways. The two are inseparable.
The Torah of YHWH
1. Man's Duty:
We live in a world in which the Torah of the Most High is given little or no attention. Sad to say, even in the
churches, YHWH's Torah is considered by many to be obsolete, a veritable burden and of little practical
use to the New Covenant believer. Is this conclusion the truth? And if so, does the Bible teach it? Listen to
these words of wisdom by two of the wisest men that ever walked this earth (Solomon son of David and
Y‘shua Son of God):
Solomon in Eccl 12:13: ―Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
Y‘shua in Mat 19:16-17: ―And behold one came and said unto him, 'Good Master, what good thing shall I do,
that I may have eternal life?' And he said unto him. 'Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one,
that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.‖
In view of such statements, let all beware of classifying the Almighty's Torah as being obsolete.
2. The Greatest Commandment:
Yes the commandments are important, no matter what people may say: and some commandments are more
important than others. In Matt 22:36-39 we discover this fact:
Question: Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Answer: Jesus said unto him:
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul and with all thy mind. This is
the first and great commandment.
And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
Let us examine those two important words, 'fear' and 'love' as used in these passages of Scripture.
3. Fear YHWH:
English 'fear': an unpleasant emotion caused by the nearness of danger or expectation of pain. Or the
reverence or awe felt for YHWH.
Hebrew 'yare': to fear, revere, be afraid, stand in awe of, honour, respect.
Greek 'phobos': fear, dread, terror; or reverence for one's husband.
When used in connection with man's duty to YHWH, the word 'fear' means primarily to 'hold YHWH in
reverential awe'; to consider Him so great a person that His will must be placed above one's own. To fear
YHWH means to be afraid to the extent of abandoning one's own wishes in favour of His – to walk in His
ways. It is an expression which begins with holy awe, progresses to respectful admiration and matures to
reverential love and worship. And mature love always manifests itself in willing obedience. This process
begins a chain of benefits.
Wisdom:
―The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and a good understanding have they that do His
commandments." (Psalm 111:10)
Fountain of Life:
―In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. The fear of the
Lord a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death." (Prov 14:26-27)
―Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith." Prov 15:16
―The fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil."
(Prov 19:23)
4. Love YHWH thy Elohim:
The word 'love' is probably the most misunderstood word in the English language. It means different things
to different people. Just say the word 'love' and into a dozen minds will spring a dozen different ideas. Your